3D Slicer 5.8 available for download
On behalf of the 3D Slicer developer community, we are pleased to announce that version 5.8 is now available for download!
3D Slicer continues to push the boundaries of open-source medical image computing, and this latest release brings a range of enhancements that improve usability, performance, and expandability. Whether you’re a researcher, clinician, or developer, Slicer 5.8 introduces powerful tools to streamline your workflows.
What’s New in Slicer 5.8?
Slicer 5.8 introduces exciting new features and refinements that enhance the user experience and expand functionality. Here are some of the key highlights:
🛠️ Interactive Transformations with Adjustable Center of Rotation
- Any node can now be translated, rotated, or scaled using interactive handles in both slice and 3D views.
- Editing operations can be constrained to specific axes, and the center of rotation can be freely chosen.
- This improved interaction system is also integrated with Markups, enhancing visualization and usability.
🔲 Generalized Clipping for Models, Segmentations, and Volume Rendering
- A new vtkMRMLClipNode class allows for complex clipping operations.
- Users can define clipping using Markups Plane, ROI, Slice Nodes, and Models.
- This functionality provides more control over how objects are visualized and analyzed in 3D.
💡 Adjustable Ambient Shadows
- Users can now modify ambient shadow intensity with shift and scale sliders in the 3D view controller.
- This improvement allows for better depth perception and a more realistic 3D scene rendering.
Left – no shadows. | Center – default shadows (100%/0%). | Right – strong shadows (200%/20%)
📁 Visual DICOM Browser
- A redesigned DICOM browser provides a more streamlined workflow for viewing and retrieving patient images.
- The new UI is optimized for clinical workflows focused on a single patient rather than multi-patient management.
🎓 New Training Portal
- A brand-new training portal at training.slicer.org replaces the older MediaWiki-based tutorials.
- Tutorials are now modular, version-controlled, and hosted on GitHub, making it easier to update and contribute new learning materials.
🔬 Over 20 New Extensions!
- New extensions expand AI-based segmentation, collaborative workflows, 3D simulation, morphological analysis, diffusion pipelines, and more.
- Some notable new extensions include MassVision, MusculoskeletalAnalysis, SegmentationVerification, and SlicerTractParcellation.
For a comprehensive list of updates, check out the detailed changelog.
Why Upgrade?
Slicer 5.8 represents a significant step forward for researchers, clinicians, and developers who rely on medical image computing. With these new features, users can:
- Work more interactively with improved transformation tools and clipping options.
- Access AI-powered tools for automated segmentation and analysis.
- Experience a better UI with enhanced rendering, annotation tools, and a new training portal.
- Leverage the latest extensions to expand Slicer’s capabilities for cutting-edge research and clinical applications.
By upgrading to Slicer 5.8, you ensure that you’re using the latest and most advanced tools available in open-source medical image computing.
Get Started with Slicer 5.8
🚀 Download Slicer 5.8 today! Get started at www.slicer.org
We encourage users to explore the new features and share their feedback with the community. Your input helps shape the future of Slicer!
We extend our deepest gratitude to the incredible 3D Slicer developer community and contributors who made this release possible!